False awakening

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False awakening is a type of dream where someone believes they have woken up from a dream, but is actually still dreaming. After a false awakening, most people perform their routine such as self-hygiene or eating breakfast.

Celia Green suggested that there are two types of false awakenings:

Type 1 is more common. The dreamer wakes up (not necessarily in their own bedroom). A pre-lucid dream can happen. However, more commonly, dreamers will believe that they have awakened, and either actually wake up in their own bed or fall back asleep in the dream.

A common scenario is being late for work. A person may realize they overslept and missed the start time at work or school. The panic from this is strong enough to wake up most people, like a nightmare.

A type 2 false awakening is rarer, where the dreamer feels like they have woken up, but the experience feels strange or frightening. The surroundings may seem normal at first, but the person may notice a feeling that something is wrong, along with unusual sounds, movements, or a tense atmosphere. These experiences often create feelings of fear, stress, or worry.

Some researchers compare Type 2 false awakenings to certain experiences in psychosis, where people feel that the world has changed in a strange but hard-to-explain way. They suggest that both may be connected to sleep processes entering waking life. However, other researchers think these experiences are not separate types but exist on a range of similar experiences.